


Matches of Convenience

by Warflower



Series: Cain´s modern murder mysteries [10]
Category: Cain Saga and Godchild
Genre: -Ish, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Cain POV, Cain is still not coping, Gen, M/M, Murder Mystery, This story does not contain original characters, mentions of Poison/Arson/Suicide and Murder
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-03
Updated: 2017-06-03
Packaged: 2018-11-08 14:19:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,308
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11083374
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Warflower/pseuds/Warflower
Summary: A couple of evenings at the bar have more consequences than Cain would have liked.





	Matches of Convenience

**Author's Note:**

> Comments and concrit are, as always, appreciated.  
> Enjoy!

They were waiting in the school´s hallway, Cain pacing back and forth, he was bored. 

There was no reason for them to be here. He caught uncle Neil´s judging stare, okay, maybe there was. 

Cain had been on his best behavior for months, but with all that was going on lately, nobody could blame him for returning to his old ways. 

Unfortunately, Cain´s revived partying habits had the tendency to keep Riff up at night, waiting for him, which frequently led to them oversleeping. 

And when uncle Neil wasn´t home, which was most of the time lately, since he was still trying to find a new steward for the country house, Merry was late to school. 

Apparently, this had happened one time to many, which was why Miss Moran, Merry ´s teacher had summoned them to have “a talk”. 

The door opened as Miss Moran bade them in, Cain knew the classroom already, so he took the time his uncle spent inspecting the learning facilities to study the teacher. 

Miss Moran was young, still short of thirty Cain assumed, her fine blond hair was professionally tied back and her wardrobe, fashionable yet simple, too, indicated that she took her position seriously. The only unnecessary embellishment he saw was the golden ring she wore on a necklace, Cain checked her fingers, she was married, a Mrs. not a Miss, or at least she had been, if her husband was still alive, she would hardly be wearing his ring around her neck. 

-Please, take a seat- Mrs. Moran indicated two chairs in front of the teacher´s desk. 

She herself settled opposite them. 

-Are you aware, why I asked to speak to you? -

Cain rolled his eyes, he might not have attended school since he was a child, but he recognized her tone, guilt-tripping and pseudo-parental. 

-We are- Uncle Neil replied, matter of fact. 

She nodded, -Than you are aware, that I am worried about Merry-Weather´s wellbeing-

Again, his uncle confirmed. He went on to elaborate -Things have not been easy lately, -

-You could say that- Cain interrupted with a chuckle, a glare of his uncle´s silenced him. 

-A friend of the family died recently and we are still processing it-

The teacher nodded, understanding. 

Cain snorted -Processing my arse… Cleo was my friend, not yours-

Uncle Neil chose to ignore the comment -And there has been trouble with our country house, so I´m out of town often, which leaves my nephew to take care of Merry-Weather… - 

Mrs. Moran turned her attention to Cain, how he sat slumped in his chair, arms crossed in front of his chest, clearly defensive. He could feel her judging him. 

-Are you alone when your uncle is out of town? – Before he could answer she added -Of course so much responsibility is hard on a teenager. – 

If his arms weren´t crossed she would probably reassuringly take his hand. 

Cain sneered, -I´m not alone, I have Riff, and we have everything under control-

For just a moment she froze, -And Riff is? – She asked. 

-The housekeeper- His uncle supplied quickly -Mr. Raffit is the housekeeper. – She frowned.

-Among other things… – Cain waggled his eyebrows, never wasting an opportunity to tease his uncle.

Both adults swallowed uncomfortably. 

When Neil spoke again his voice was strained -As you can see, my nephew has been…volatile as of late, so the housekeeper has both hand full, with reigning him in- 

Cain grinned -That he does-

-Which unfortunately leads to the occasional slip-up were Merry-Weather is concerned. – Neil finished. 

There was understanding and pity, in the teacher´s eyes, Cain could not decide which sentiment he loathed more. 

-I understand- Her voice was heavy with feeling -Would it be acceptable, if I came to visit sometime- she asked. -Just to see if there is anything I can do to help insuring Merry-Weather´s wellbeing. – 

Cain didn´t bother to answer. 

-Of course- His uncle assured her -It would be no problem at all, and I´m certain Merry will be looking forward to your visit. –

-Certainly- Cain could practically taste the sarcasm, he would certainly not be looking forward to the visit.

 

-…And now she wants to come over to “inspect the living conditions of our dear Merry-Weather” – Cain whined.

-She did not phrase it like that, did she? – Oscar opened another bottle of beer, took a sip and handed it over to Cain. 

Cain looked up -It was implied-. He waited a moment for any potential poisoning to kick in, then he took a sip. Most poisons took much longer to show even first symptoms, but Cain was desperate for a drink. 

Oscar raised his eyebrows. -Not that I´m not happy about your company, believe me, I am, but are you sure you shouldn´t be home with your sister- 

-Not you, too- Cain pleaded -Merry is fine, Riff is with her. She´s spending lots of time with her friends, why can´t I do the same? – 

-Because other than us- Oscar gestured at himself, Percy and Emmeline -Merry ´s friends neither get drunk- He indicated the growing amount of empty bottles their table sported -Nor sleep with strangers, seriously, does Riff know about your hook-ups? –

-He suspects- He took a big gulp -But it´s none of his business-

-He doesn´t ask? – Percy asked, he had spent the majority of the evening ogling Emmeline´s breasts. Which while doubtlessly worth ogling, were of less importance than his beer. And Cain´s manners were simply put, better than that.

-No- 

-I wish my parents wouldn´t ask- Emmeline complained -It´s always Emmeline, why don´t you settle down. It´s never too early for a committed relationship, Emmeline. They just want me to marry some rich aristocrat to polish up their financials, I´m seventeen for fuck´s sake! – 

They mmmhhed in understanding, no week went by that Emmeline´s parents didn´t try to present her with another rich suitor. As beautiful as she was they weren´t hard to find.

Oscar and Percy too had been among her suitors, although Oscar had been deemed inadequate the moment her parents discovered that he was disinherited. 

Percy, on the other hand was rich, but not an aristocrat, which was the only reason her parents did not overly complain when she decided she just wanted to be friends. Percy himself had, apparently, not gotten the memo yet, as he continued to follow her around like a puppy. 

-At least they haven’t suggested me yet- Cain quipped. 

Emmeline´s look was icy -They did. I reminded them of all the times you called me fat as a child, then they decided to bury the issue. –

-Oops- Cain swallowed -It seems I was a jerk as a child. In my defense, my mother had just died and I was kind of mad at all women. – That was not the reason, but currently Cain didn´t feel like explaining how he´d had a crush on her brother Gilford and Emmeline was interfering, especially taking Gilford´s current mental state into consideration.

Not wanting to dwell on it anymore Cain emptied the bottle. -Can I get another? – 

 

Thankfully the next morning brought distraction, or more accurately, it brought the newspaper. 

-Did you see this? – Cain turned towards Riff, exited -A woman was murdered last night. Down by the warehouses in North Greenwich, it´s said her Uterus was removed. Do you think we have a wannabe Jack-the-Ripper? –

-Possible- Riff was not nearly as excited as he was supposed to be as he sat down beside Cain.

-What is it? – The last thing Cain needed was that Riff, too started complaining about his coping mechanisms. 

-You look tired- Riff stated. 

-I am tired- Cain replied. 

-So am I- Riff informed him, he was trying to appear matter of fact but to Cain the subtle attempt at manipulation was obvious. 

-You don´t have to stay up for me, as you very well know. Actually, I told you repeatedly not to wait up-

-And yet I do it, anyway- 

Cain was getting mad -I´m old enough to look after myself, you don´t have to mother me- 

-You are seventeen. – 

-Almost eighteen- Cain threw in -basically an adult. – 

-… One on the way to an alcohol problem, maybe- 

A beat of silence. 

-Sorry, I didn´t mean that- He didn´t, Cain knew, but Riff´s control had slipped, and whenever that happened things were seriously going sideways. 

-I just don´t want to be alone, or think- he added before Riff could assure him that he wasn´t -You can come along if you are worried about me, I miss spending time with you. –

Riff sighed -I´d love to, but someone has to stay home with Merry and your uncle is going back to Cornwall, tomorrow- 

Cain scooted closer to lean his head onto Riff´s shoulder -Please come, Oscars pub-quiz is this Friday, we can get a babysitter… - 

Riffs smile was tired, -Okay, I´ll come. But no partying until Friday-

 

There was no partying until Friday and there wasn´t much partying on Friday, the quiz went well, Cain and Oscar came in second, which was totally Oscars fault but they didn´t stay long after that. 

Riff was worried about leaving Marie, their babysitter alone with a whole sleepover of four rambunctious children and Cain saw one of his old one-night-stands from before Merry had showed up, and he really did not want to explain just why he had used a fake name when they had both agreed that it would be a one-time thing. Plus, Riff was there, it would have been awkward.

So, they went home early, curled up in their bedroom, Riff´s bedroom, officially, and were for once well rested in the morning. 

Marie was distributing hot cocoa to the children, while Riff was making pancakes for all and Cain was scouring the newspapers for any mentions of the pseudo-Ripper.

-Mrs. Moran said she would like to come over on Thursday- Merry said. 

-He´s not listening- Leroy commented, when Cain failed to react. 

Merry harrumphed and aimed a firm kick against her brother´s shin.

Cain flinched -What? – he asked. 

-The teacher is coming over on Thursday- Eric informed him, Merry glowered silently, arms crossed. 

-Okay- Cain folded his newspaper -Does she want tea or anything-

Merry uncrossed her arms -I think so, and a tour of the house… - 

Cain nodded -Fine. –

Riff chose the opportunity to deliver another batch of pancakes. 

Noticing the folded newspaper, he asked -You emptied the post-box already? – 

-Yeah- Cain confirmed. -I didn´t look through it yet, it´s probably just bills anyway. They´re on the counter in the foyer. – 

-I´ll get them- Marie volunteered. 

Cain smiled -Attentive, I like her – Riff shook his head. 

-What? – he asked, noticing the threatening stares of the siblings. 

-You can´t have her, - Leroy declared -she´s our babysitter- Yuna nodded in assent. 

-Okay- Cain chuckled, it was cute how Leroy always acted so protective of his sister -I won´t take her from you. – 

Marie came back into the kitchen, letters in hand.

She was eying one letter in particular -This one feels weird, too heavy- she said, tearing it open -it´s addressed to Cain Haaa… - she trailed off. 

A liquid swished over her hand. 

Everything froze.

Cain stared. Then he smelt almonds. 

-Fuck- he breathed. 

Immediately he added, -Merry, you and your friends go upstairs. Now. – 

Merry rose at once, she knew better than to question her brother. Marie was wide eyed, confused and frightened.

For good reason. -Riff- Cain asked. 

-I´ll fetch the antidote- 

Marie started swaying on her feet. 

-And call the ambulance Cain added. – 

Just then Marie passed out. 

 

As soon as the ambulance left to take the convulsing Marie to Bupa Cromwell Hospital, Cain called the parents of Merry´ s friends to pick them up. Then he called Landor. 

-Hello- Landor asked, audibly disgruntled. -What do you want? It´s bloody nine-thirty on a Saturday-

-I´m really sorry to disturb your morning- Cain assured him -But somebody just tried to kill me-

That seemed to wake Landor up -Kill you? Are you okay? – 

-I am- Cain leaned back against the front door, at least Landor took his claims serious, Burgess wouldn´t have. -But the babysitter isn´t. She´s on the way to the hospital, Riff already gave her the antidote. –

-Antidote? So, it was poison? – Landor inquired. 

Cain nodded, -It smelled like bitter almonds- he added, -so, it was probably a liquid cyanide agent. When the concentration is high enough, it kills on contact with the skin- 

-Can you tell if the concentration was high enough? – Cain heard shuffling, most likely Landor was getting dressed, apparently, the DCI was planning to come personally.

-I can´t tell, but it looks like it- Cain contemplated -the inside of the envelope has been waterproofed, I doubt you´ll find any fingerprints. –

-Great- murmured Landor. -You stay indoors, I don´t want to have another murder on my hands. – 

 

-You really do have the worst luck in existence- Landor stated. 

He sat opposite Cain, on his table in the Belgravia precinct. -Did you kill anybody in your previous life? – 

Cain usually chose not to believe in Karma, bad things had been happening to- and around him long before he had done anything that could be qualified as evil. 

-Not as far as I know, - he answered, and added mentally, not in my previous life.

-It was Laurel water- Landor began -A liquid cyanide agent, like you suspected- 

Cain nodded, he had suspected as much. -It´s fairly easy to produce some at home, only getting the concentration right is a bit tricky. No fingerprints? – 

-None- Landor´s clasped hands clenched on the table. -Any idea who would want to kill you? – 

-None- Everyone Cain could currently think of was either dead or behind bars. 

-Might the attempt have been aimed at your …housekeeper, Mr. Raffit? – Landor asked. 

Cain chuckled -Riff has even less enemies than me, if you discount my uncle, and the chances of who opens the mail are split pretty evenly, so whoever sent that letter would have to be fine with killing either of us. – 

Landor nodded. 

After a second Cain added -They probably don´t know me that well. 

-How so? – Landor asked. 

-Well, I´m a poison expert- Cain explained -It´s fairly stupid to try and kill me with poison. – 

-So, whoever tried to kill you does not know you well enough to be aware of your hobby- Landor confirmed -That´s good. -

-Not too good, - Cain shrugged -Not many people know about my poisons, I´m not hiding my hobby, but it hardly comes up in polite conversation. – 

Landor slumped. -So, we have nothing? – 

Cain smiled, apologetic. He decided to change the topic -Can you tell me anything about that wannabe Ripper-successor? – 

-You´re not authorized to know anything about that, - Landor said -and it isn´t my case, anyway… – 

 

Mrs. Moran dropped by on Thursday, as previously announced. The tea had been prepared beforehand and was taken between Mrs. Moran, Merry, his uncle and Cain himself, Riff was upstairs, hiding Cain´s poison for the tour of the house Mrs. Moran wished for. 

-Lucinda is fine- Merry ´s teacher assured them -We´re not at school now. – 

-That´s a nice name- Merry commented, Cain rolled his eyes, it was a name. 

-You think so- she beamed at Merry -My Clyde always used to say so, too. – 

-Your late husband? – Cain inquired.

For a moment, she seemed taken by surprise. -Yes, how did you know? – She asked carefully. 

-Your necklace- Cain indicated towards it, -You are wearing his ring. - 

-I am- she touched the ring in question. -It has been almost six years, yet I am still grieving, isn´t that silly of me? – 

Cain shook his head -I don´t think so, if you loved someone, you are allowed to miss them. Isn´t that right, Merry? – 

-Yes- Merry agreed -I still miss my mother, too, and Elsie, and Cleo, although Cain misses him more. – 

Cain leaned over to ruffle his sister´s hair, smiling sadly -He was your friend, too. –

-Enough of death and grieving- Uncle Neil decided, finally. -Lucinda, didn´t you want a tour of the house? – 

The teacher perked up, -That I wanted, indeed. – 

-Good- His uncle turned to Cain -You wouldn´t mind to show Lucinda around, would you? – he asked. 

Cain bit back a groan -Not at all- He heaved himself out of his chair. 

Addressing Lucinda, he added -Shall we? – 

 

Talking to Lucinda was surprisingly pleasant, they began their tour on the ground floor before inspecting the kitchen downstairs and then doubling back upstairs, to inspect the ballroom and balcony on the first and the bedrooms and library on the second floor. 

Before long Cain had learned that although she did not share his interest in toxicology Lucinda was well acquainted with the medicine of the human body, her father had taught at Barts and the London school of Medicine and Dentistry, one of the universities Cain considered attending himself. 

Eventually they reached the living room in the attic. 

-We lived somewhere else before moving here and still had all the furniture- Cain explained -And the room up here wasn´t used anyways, so we turned it into a living room, it´s much more convenient than climbing up all the way from the solar after each movie night. Ah Riff! –

Riff had, in fact just exited Cain little study, he was apparently finished with stowing away poisons and other chemicals. 

Riff froze, so did Lucinda. 

-Lucinda- he said. 

-Riffael- it was barely more than a breath. 

Cain wanted to ask how they knew each other, yet he didn´t get the chance. 

-I see you are doing fine- Lucinda´s voice had turned to ice -Not as well as you used to do, of course-

-Yes- Riff was cold, but polite -I have managed to build a new life, it seems the same applies to you-

Her laugh was hysteric -Build a new life? After you destroyed my old one, you mean? –

Riff flinched, Cain could only watch. 

-What happened was a tragedy. – Never had Cain heard Riff sound this pleading -Believe me, I miss Clyde, too. He was my brother, after all– 

-He was my husband- Lucinda accused -And you killed him- 

-It was a tragedy… - started Riff, Lucinda did not let him finish. 

-You took everything I loved away from me, you killed him and left me with nothing. You faked a suicide attempt so they would not convict you, and yet here you are. – 

She turned to Cain, -You should learn how it feels like to lose everything you love. – 

There was no time to react as she pushed him, he knew the stairs were behind him, steep and tightly wound, the fall would most likely kill him. 

But he did not fall. He heard Lucinda scream as a hand clasped around his wrist, something fell past him, yet he himself remained still. He stared up into blue eyes, Riff had caught him. 

Riff had caught him and hadn´t cared about pushing Lucinda down the stairs in his hurry. 

After Riff helped him upright he glanced down the stairs, there were blood-streaks on the steps, he heard whimpering from the foot of the stairs.

Then there were footsteps, then Merry screamed. 

-Call an ambulance- Cain croaked. -And the police-.

Merry hurried away, presumably in search of a telephone. 

 

-Shall I look if she is badly injured? – Riff asked. 

Cain didn´t answer, his face must have spoken volumes. Gently, Riff picked him up and carried him to the couch. When they had settled down Cain tried to curl up against Riff´s side, but Riff pulled away. 

-We need to talk, don´t we? – Cain asked.

Riff´s face was pained -I guess we do. -

There was an awkward silence, eventually Cain chose to begin -So she was your sister in law? – 

Riff´s chuckle was a bitter thing, -Unfortunately, it´s more complicated than that-

-Complicated, in which way? – Cain cocked his head. 

-You know about what happened to my family, before… - Riff fingered the scars on his wrists, for a moment Cain wanted to take his hands and kiss every one of them, but he knew that would only distract from the matter at hand. 

-The house-fire. I know. – 

Riff nodded -And you know what the authorities thought. –

-Arson- confirmed Cain -They thought you were responsible for the house burning down. –

Riff nodded again -I didn´t burn the house down- Riff said.

-Obviously- Cain never thought that he had. 

-I didn´t do it. But my brother did. – 

That was new information to Cain, -Why? – he asked. -And why does his wife blame you? –

He reached for Riff´s hand, tentatively. 

-She has reason to hate me- Riff stated. Like an afterthought he added -Me and Clyde, we were never close. –

Cain frowned, searching for the connection between the two statements. 

-You see, - thoughtlessly Riff interlaced their fingers -before she became my brother´s wife, Lucinda was my fiancée –

Cain stiffened, his ears ringing, a fiancée, Riff had a fiancée? A woman? 

As if oblivious to his shock Riff continued -Her father was a Professor at Barts, and I was studying medicine, I figured seducing her would be advantageous. – He shook his head at his own stupidity, or at least that was how Cain interpreted it. 

He did not know what to think, how could his Riff ever think about marrying someone else. 

-Of course, I didn´t love her- Riff continued -And after a while, she must have noticed. –

Cain felt cold, numb and cold. Idly he wondered whether the ambulance had arrived yet or if Lucinda, Riff´s ex-fiancée was listening. 

-She eloped with my brother, on the day of our wedding- Carefully Riff chanced a glance towards Cain, he must not have liked what he saw, as he untangled his fingers from Cain´s and folded his hands in his lap. 

He looked down at them, or off into space, Cain couldn´t tell, he didn´t care either way, he told himself. Riff had wanted to marry once, who cared? 

Cain cared, that was the problem. 

-Clyde was always my complete opposite, he always preferred partying over studying, never bothered with any higher education. My parents´ money he drank away. 

I thought, if she was happy it would be okay, but of course her father started to single me out. I had to work twice as hard as the rest to sustain my grades, I didn´t complain, it was my fault after all. Then Clyde came back home, he had left Lucinda Mexico, where they spent their honeymoon. He was broke, the money from his bank account drunken and gambled away. 

My parents wanted to give him more, I advised them against it, he needed to grow up, I said, take responsibility for his actions. Before long my parents agreed, they had always liked me better, after all. Clyde didn´t take it well, that night the house burned down. You know the rest. –

He did.

It would not have been surprising if there had been tears in Riff´s eyes, given the nature of his story, instead his face was expressionless. His voice was numb, as numb as Cain felt. 

He pulled his knees up to his chest. It was time for the ambulance to arrive, preferably with the police in tow. 

 

-You don´t understand- Cain whined, whether the intended recipient of his complaints was his nearly emptied beer or Oscar, Percy and Emmeline was anyone´s guess -he had a fiancée. – 

-We know Cain- Oscar consolingly patted his arm. 

-You told us three times, after all – Percy seemed decidedly less understanding. 

-So- Emmeline attempted to change the topic -What happened to the woman? – She avoided referring to her as Riff´s fiancée, knowing full-well that it would only help Cain to further wallow in his despair. 

-Oh, right- Cain looked up from his beer, empty-eyed. -She´s still alive, but in critical condition, the doctors don´t know if she will make it- 

I hope she doesn´t Cain thought, but did not dare say aloud. 

-She was the one who poisoned the babysitter? – Percy asked. 

-Yes, yes, poor Marie. It seems she recognized Riff´s name at the parent-teacher meeting and decided to take her chances with the Laurel water, it´s easy to distil and since her father had a background in medicine… - He trailed off -Of course she didn´t know I was an expert... -

-And Merry? – Oscar inquired -How is she holding up? –

Cain attempted a half-hearted smile. -As good as can be expected. – After a minute of glowering he added. -The good news is that Mrs. Hemming seems to be coming back, so at least Merry is happy about that. – 

Oscar smiled. -That´s good- 

-Yes- Percy laughed -Oscar is always happy to hear about his bride-to-be. –

It took only a couple of well-aimed glares from Oscar and Emmeline to make Percy realise his mistake.

-How dare he have a fiancée? – Cain ranted. -I should get a fiancée, that´d teach him. –

Oscar rolled his eyes. 

-Cain, you are seventeen- Emmeline informed him -And although my parents might want to convince me of the opposite, seventeen year olds do not have fiancées. – 

Cain had an idea.  
-Oh, oh- breathed Oscar seeing the glint in Cain´s eyes. 

-Emmeline… - a mischievous smirk crossed Cain´s face -Would you like to marry me? -

**Author's Note:**

> And I have a Tumblr now, (a Kaori Yuki side blog, anyways).  
> Whoever wants to say hi may do so at a-warflower.tumblr.com


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